294 WILD SCENES AND SONG-BIKDS. 



bluffs along the shores of Lake Huron, he wrote to him im- 

 mediately to endeavor to find its eyrie and send him one of 

 the young. 



His friend had been successful, and sent him this young 

 bird ; stating, at the same time, that the location of the nest 

 and the general habits of the old birds, entirely corresponded 

 with the description Mr. Audubon had given of his dis- 

 covery and observation of the nest and habits of the Bird 

 of Washington, in the cliffs of Green River, Kentucky. 



I had no copy of Audubon's plate at hand, to compare the 

 drawing with the living bird ; but perceiving surely that it 

 was entirely new, I concluded hastily that it must be the 

 veritable " Falco Washingtonii" especially as its owner 

 stated that he had several times had this specimen compared 

 with Audubon's original plate, and found its markings to 

 agree fully. Still I had some little doubt, fearing that my 

 memory might have deceived me, and therefore requested 

 my wife as the period of our stay had now nearly closed 

 to at least take an accurate sketch of the head of this fine 

 specimen in pencil. She did so, and I was particularly careful 

 to note the proportions. I know these to be perfectly accu- 

 rate, and on comparing them when I returned to Philadelphia, 

 both with the drawing of Audubon and the specimens in the 

 Academy of Natural Sciences, so much talked of, I became con- 

 vinced that this was a different species from either, and that, 

 too, in characteristics admitting of no close correspondence. 



In Audubon's plate the correspondence is not accurate by 

 any means, in coloring of the plumage in the first place and 

 then the outlines of the head and form of the beak are in 

 too many respects dissimilar to admit of the possibility of so 

 accurate an artist having been guilty of such omissions in a 

 subject so important to his reputation. He had clearly seen 

 the new bird on the wing, and not having as yet chanced to 

 meet with the great Cinerious Eagle in his wanderings, he 

 has unguardedly confounded it with the new bird which he 

 had seen before on the wing, and which he meant to name 



